One of the treats of diving here in Lanzarote, is that we have “forests” of black coral in various parts of the island. Black Coral is typically found at 45 meters or more, so it’s right on the limit of air diving, but we quite frequently dive to those depths to look at the coral.
The sea bed close in shore here consists of lava reefs, which drop gently to around 40 meters, and in most places there is then a steep drop to 300 meters. The coral lives just before the big drop offs.
As you can see from the photo, it’s not black and doesn’t even look like coral! It actually looks like woody shrubs and even sways in the current in the same way plants do.
It’s a tree like coral and is part of the anemone family. The coral is quite brightly colored, but at depth the colors are invisible. The name “black” refers to the skeleton which is the part that can be retrieved and is the official gem of Hawaii. It’s one of the slowest growing creatures on earth and is among the longest lived organisms on the planet. It is estimated that some colonies are more than 4,000 years old.
The slow growth means that black coral is now a protected species and makes it extremely valuable.
Have you seen black coral on your travels?
Also have a look at:
Post new comment